ANCA Events 29 Sep 2010 - 10 Oct 2010 The Oracle Game Large scale ceramics by Vivien Lightfoot The Oracle Game is an investigation of our disempowerment when it comes to dealing with climate change. Our resolve to act with serious intent is constantly eroded by skeptics who hold entirely opposite viewpoints. I have expressed our contemporary "Oracle" as two opposing figures. The truth is hard to discern and "the ball" is passed from one expert to the next. We are bombarded with predictions of environmental crises based on scientific data. Nevertheless global warming denial usually follows natural disasters such as cyclones. Expert viewpoints vary and any change that impedes financial gain is mitigated by self serving power groups. Also there are many who believe that although the climate is indeed warming it is not due to anthropogenic greenhouse gases. I have expressed this conundrum as a drama that references the ancient Mayan courtly culture. Wonderful terracotta sculptures from AD 600-900 reveal a rich and complex society. The centre piece for The Oracle Game is a ball game once played in the Mayan court. The players wore elaborate animal headdresses representing the animals they hunted. My players wear headdresses depicting species that are threatened by climate change. The spectators of the game are based on the captives of the Mayan warriors who were made to wear humiliating rags through their ears. The spectator busts in this exhibition have "newspaper rags" threaded through their ears to convey our sense of impotency in spite of all the alarming, albeit often contradictory, information we read and hear. The imagery for the exhibition also draws inspiration from Robert Rauschenberg’s "Odalisk", 1955-58, which initially appears to be an absurd artwork. A stuffed rooster perches upon an ungainly box that is supported on a single post hovering precariously, on a cushion. A sense of instability is thus engendered. In reference to this extraordinary work a parallel set of spectators appear to balance on exotically textured ceramic cushions symbolising our desire to maintain our comfortable life styles. Seven different animals that we routinely consume perch on their heads. We are trapped by our own affluence; each of us knowing our personal carbon footprint is enormous but still not anxious enough to make serious adjustments. Images: 1. Thumbnail - Eclipse, detail 2 and 3 - Eclipse, 2010. Stoneware and porcelain, 650x300cm